SUSPECTED ISLAMISTS ATTACK CHURCHES NEAR NIGERIA’S CHIBOK

MAIDUGURI, Nigeria: Suspected Boko Haram Islamists attacked a series of churches on Sunday (Monday in Manila) near Chibok, the northeast Nigeria town where more than 200 teenage girls were kidnapped in April, with dozens feared dead, witnesses said. Residents said the gunmen riding on motorcycles opened fire on worshippers and pursued them as they tried to flee into the surrounding bush. The attackers hurled explosives into churches as services were ongoing and torched several buildings, witnessed further reported. The targeted villages have been identified as Kwada, Ngurojina, Karagau, Kautikari, all in Borno state, the stronghold of the Islamist group which has killed thousands during a five-year extremist uprising.